

Wine Industry Network Launches WIN Media Services
WineIndustryNetwork.com Expands to Offer Full Service Video Marketing & Production
Healdsburg, Calif., July 27, 2011 – The Wine Industry Network (WIN), today announced that it would expand their current offering of marketing services to provide complete video marketing and production tailored to meeting the needs of wine industry suppliers, service providers, wineries and winery associations.
Since launching in 2009, WIN has earned a reputation for providing creative new direct marketing services to wine industry suppliers. “Over the past two years we have developed a wide range of marketing services for our members,” said WIN President/Founder George Christie. “Nearly every supplier we work with has expressed a desire for marketing videos to help promote their products. WIN Media is in direct response to these requests,” explained Christie.
The production team that is now WIN Media has produced more than 150 wine industry videos over the past four years and has garnered two prestigious Telly Awards. As video on the internet continues to grow at a tremendous rate, large and small businesses in every area of the wine industry are embracing this medium. It has proven to be one of the most effective ways to communicate a brand message, and more importantly, the personalities behind those brands.
“Providing video marketing & production is the natural evolution for the Wine Industry Network,” said Christie. “We are already in the business of creating first class marketing content for our clients and our video team is committed to producing top quality promotional videos as another way to execute on their strategic marketing goals.”
WIN’s extensive experience within the industry and ability to produce the highest quality videos at an affordable price offer an exceptional opportunity. WIN Media will offer a number of affordable video packages to industry suppliers, service professionals, wineries, industry trade associations, publications and other closely related businesses.
Nick Young Joins Wine Industry Network as Membership Operations Manager
WineIndustryNetwork.com Expands Membership Services

Healdsburg, Calif., April 18, 2011 – George Christie, President of The Wine Industry Network (WIN) is pleased to announce the appointment of Nick Young as their new Membership Operations Manager and will be key support for the rapidly expanding industry resource and marketing platform. “Nick has extensive experience with membership retention and customer management. His technical knowledge and proven track record in direct marketing, web design and management will add value to our organization and push our level of customer service over the top,” said George Christie.
Young brings with him a versatile background in marketing, database management and design. He has spent his past five years working as Information Services Director for the Healdsburg Chamber of Commerce, an organization that has experienced tremendous growth and success in recent years. His contributions to the chamber have been numerous including the migration to digital communications, maintenance of database systems, and implementation and maintenance of social networking channels. Additionally, Young is a local Healdsburg native with a rich wine industry heritage as the grandson of Robert Young, renowned winegrower and industry icon.
Young’s ability to build and maintain customer relationships along with his versatility and resourcefulness were the deciding factors for Christie. “His entrepreneurial spirit was a big plus for me,” says Christie. “I’m looking forward to Nick bringing his strong interpersonal skills, fresh perspective, and energy to WIN.”
“The Wine Industry Network is breaking new ground in the industry,” said Nick Young. “Their model is extremely exciting and innovative and is a perfect fit for my interest and experience. I am eager to be a part of such a dedicated group of people.”
About the Wine Industry Network:
The Wine Industry Network is a comprehensive business-to-business (B2B) Internet marketplace and resource site specifically created to help wine industry professionals more effectively and efficiently locate and connect with suppliers and service providers, regardless of region or category of interest.WIN is dedicated to the business of wine and to providing information crucial to the success of the entire wine industry.
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Thick, heavy directories were once a mainstay for B-to-B marketers trying to reach peers and prospects within their sector. They all had at least one such well-worn book on their desks.
The winery and vineyard business in the United States—going back well more than 100 years in many regions—is no exception. It's a business organized around small, geographic pockets, which puts a heavy marketing burden on the suppliers who are trying to sell equipment and professional services to those firms.
The best way to reach such a diverse audience today, of course, isn't with a tome that becomes outdated even before the ink dries but rather online.
The Wine Industry Network (WIN) is an online marketplace that launched last October to help foster a sense of community in the industry. "In the old print directories, there just wasn't enough information to make an informed buying decision," says George Christie, a long-time wine industry marketer who founded the site. "Now, they can have the whole market in front of them in one place."
About 175 wine industry suppliers—everyone from what Christie calls the "bottle, barrel and cork guys" to attorneys and accountants providing professional services—now have profiles listed at wineindustrynetwork.com. Some of them are small companies with few marketing resources and less marketing acumen. Others are big corporations, but looking for a venue where they can appeal to a focused customer niche.
The WIN has four categories: winemaking and production; vineyards; professional services and operations; and sales and marketing. Visitors to the Web site sign up for e-newsletters distributed every other week that are aimed at their specific categories. The newsletters contain the logos and information from suppliers that fit the particular category. As of June, the WIN had about 17,000 of the sector suppliers' B-to-B customer targets signed up, including 12,000 alone in the winemaking and vineyard categories.
Vino by the Numbers: The Metrics of B-to-B Networking
Suppliers pay monthly dues to be listed on the site, ranging from $45 per month for a basic membership to $90 per month to be highlighted in multiple product search categories.
Christie said the WIN builds its subscriber and member lists not only through direct site visits but also by signing up wine industry members at trade shows, via social media and even by phone. Ultimately, Christie knows the top thing B-to-B suppliers in his sector are looking for is proof of return on investment, which he is more than happy to provide by making site metrics and reports available to them.
Information on monthly reports includes:
Christie said many people advised him against providing too much information about the site's effectiveness, but "to me, one of the benefits of the Internet is you can provide transparency. With print marketing, you often don't know who is seeing you."
Top-Shelf Ideas: Tips on B-to-B Community Building
Christie offered some thoughts on what you should keep in mind if considering creating your own niche B-to-B networking community.
1. Online, even small guys can look big. Smaller suppliers can achieve a greater reach online and be listed in close proximity to larger competitors
2. Big guys can look small too. In sectors like the wine industry, Christie says, big companies can benefit from looking like smaller, more intimate operations ready to make their customers feel like part of the family.
3. Social media is often free but has indirect costs: Leaping into places like Facebook and LinkedIn is free upfront, but the indirect cost comes in the ability to maintain and frequently update your social media presence.
4. Have realistic expectations. The WIN, for example, is a B-to-B marketplace focused on a defined sector, so monthly clicks are not going to number into the thousands. "If 30 to 50 people have clicked on your logo in a given month, then you are doing fine. The people who need to see you are seeing you."
Wine Industry Network Expands Social Media Marketing Services
WineIndustryNetwork.com Continues Strategic Growth of Online Wine Business Community
Healdsburg, Calif., June 7, 2010 – The Wine Industry Network (WIN), the fastest growing and most cutting edge B2B marketplace and online resource for the wine industry today announced the expansion of their direct marketing services to include a more comprehensive social media marketing platform for industry buyers and suppliers.
Current economic conditions continue to challenge businesses of all sizes to look for new and innovative ways to reach potential customers. WIN is addressing this challenge by creating new sales channels for their supplier members with the launch of the WIN blog, a customized social networking platform that encourages dialog and provides relevant industry information, and by offering enhanced social media marketing services. These services extend the reach of their members while providing them with a cost-effective addition to traditional marketing. WIN also leverages existing social media channels such as Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn, and is strategically building the wine industry’s largest online business community, taking B2B marketing to a new level.
“Our primary objective is to help our members achieve the highest return on their marketing investment,” said Elizabeth Slater, Executive Vice President/Founder of Wine Industry Network. “The expansion of our social media platform provides access to more customers for our members and optimizes the WIN online presence on their behalf”.
“Social Marketing is rapidly changing the way brands communicate with their customers,” said George Christie, President/Founder of Wine Industry Network. “Our innovative approach and new social marketing platform helps our supplier members engage in more direct and meaningful conversations, which in turn is reinforcing their brand equity, their relationships, and their revenues.
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Media Contact: Tami Christie 707.433.2557 ext. 103 tami@wineindustrynetwork.com |
For Immediate Release
Wine Industry Network Continues to Gain Momentum
Unified Symposium Attendees and Exhibitors Realize Potential of Industry Resource Site
Healdsburg, Calif., February 10, 2010 – The Wine Industry Network (WIN), the fastest growing wine industry business to business network in North America, generated a tremendous response at the 2010 Unified Wine and Grape Symposium and significantly increased the number of registered users on the site.
WIN, launched this past October, is helping industry suppliers build their businesses in the challenging economic climate by blending technology with tradition. The scrappy start-up company that is the brain-child of industry veterans George Christie and Elizabeth Slater provides a more comprehensive resource with direct marketing features such as targeted email campaigns, social network marketing, and strategic industry alliances, all of which allow supplier members to target, track and measure sales and marketing efforts. By continuing to evolve the site and services to meet the needs of WIN members and users, the industry is quickly incorporating the WIN site in their business-to-business purchases & marketing programs. While the reception by suppliers has been very positive from the beginning, the overwhelming increase in new registered site users at the show was a welcomed affirmation.
“We were thrilled at the response from winery attendees and industry suppliers who took the time to visit our booth and learn more about WIN”, said Elizabeth Slater, Executive Vice President/Founder of Wine Industry Network. “Once they saw the services, resource information, and capabilities available on our site, they didn’t hesitate to sign up”.
“Our focus and commitment to excellent service, creative thinking, and bottom line results for our WIN members and industry users is what has generated this type of response”, said George Christie, President/Founder of the Wine Industry Network. “The people we spoke to at the show were able to see first-hand the value that WIN brings to the industry”.
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The North Bay Business Journal announces the launch of WIN!
September 28th, 2009
Wine marketers launch virtual ‘marketing co-op’
By Jeff Quackenbush, Business Journal Staff Reporter
HEALDSBURG – Two wine marketing consultants are launching a business-to-business Internet site they believe will give wineries, winegrape growers, suppliers and service providers a more informative, targeted virtual venue for finding each other.
George Christie of Christie Wine Consultants in Healdsburg and Elizabeth Slater of In Short Marketing in Windsor plan to launch Wine Industry Network on Oct. 5 with a starting database of information on about 700 “traditional” suppliers to the industry, such as vendors for bottles, barrels, corks, grapes, etc. In addition to details on the estimated 1,000 such suppliers in North America, they want to include service providers such as attorneys, associations and educational institutions.
“We think of this as more of a marketplace versus a directory,” said Mr. Christie, president of the venture. “A directory is where you get a phone number or a name. We want to drive leads to members.” They call this a “marketing cooperative” in which the suppliers are “members,” paying for market reach – $35 a month for one region or $90 monthly for the continent – rather than per transaction to attract small suppliers with slim margins. Trade associations and training institutions would have no-cost memberships. Accessing information on the site is free of charge.
“The scope of the supplier and production information provided has been a real need in the wine industry for a long time,” said Honore Comfort, executive director of the Sonoma County Wineries Association.The brokerage model was tried by St. Helena-based eVine, which ceased operations, and originally by Novato-based WineryExchange, which shifted to production of private and national brands. “We tend to be a conduit, rather than a broker,” Ms. Slater said.
For the membership fee, suppliers get a page on the site to add pricing and customer details, referrals, marketing collateral such as videos, pictures and digital presentations, as well as company and product news. The latter appear on the home page for the site as well as in weekly e-mail dispatches to those who specify they want information from particular types of suppliers in certain regions or states. Building on the rule of thumb of one wine club manager for every 200 to 300 members, the staff of Wine Industry Network, currently at five people, will grow to help members keep their information accurate and up to date, according to Ms. Slater. A test version of the site became active earlier this year to allow suppliers to test the service and add information. An undisclosed number of the suppliers represented on the site at press time have become members. The goal is to have 3,000 to 5,000 members in the next five years.
Ms. Slater and Mr. Christie, both partners in the Santa Rosa-based wine business consultancy The Octagon Group, came up with the marketplace concept in August 2007 as they discussed frequent calls from clients asking for information about vendors. The year-round virtual trade show concept came in early 2008 after Mr. Christie’s visit to the large annual Unified Wine & Grape Symposium in Sacramento.
For more information, call 707-433-2557 or visit www.wineindustrynetwork.com.
WIN Press Room
The Wine Industry Network (WIN) is evolving daily. This press room was created specifically to help journalists find the latest information quickly and easily. At WIN, we are about innovation and results. The WIN inspiration is about meeting the needs of wine industry suppliers and buyers by
providing in an Internet platform, a virtual meeting place, where suppliers and buyers can effectively and efficiently connect regionally, nationally and internationally.
Our commitment to the business of wine led to the Wine Industry Network concept. A web based, wine industry specific, B2B marketplace dedicated to servicing both buyers and suppliers through a variety of direct and interactive marketing features. What makes WIN unique is that this is all we do. We are focused 100 percent on driving business for our members and helping prospective buyers find exactly the right supplier or service professional every time.
Products and Services, Ratings & Referrals, Marketing Videos, Business Tips & Tactics, information on Industry Associations, Educational Institutions and a wide range of Wine Business Resources are what members will find today. We are already working on the next set of features designed specifically to give supplier members access to the best on-line marketing tools currently available.
Supporting wine industry professionals and suppliers by offering the highest level of customer service is the WIN cornerstone. Our work never stops. Everyday, we move forward with new ideas. We intend to revolutionize the way the wine industry buyers and suppliers interact, and in a way that saves time, increases profitability and leverages the latest in marketing technology.
When you learn about who we are, and what our backgrounds are, you will know why meeting and exceeding customer expectations is what drives us.
For journalists, this is a comprehensive stop in learning about, and keeping up-to-date on the Wine Industry Network.
· FAST FACTS
· ABOUT WIN
· LATEST NEWS
· WIN TIMELINE
· PRESS RELEASES
· FOUNDER BIOS
· PRESS KIT LOGO
· WIN IN THE NEWS
WINE INDUSTRY NETWORK FAST FACTS
WHAT: The Wine Industry Network, WIN, is a comprehensive business-to-business (B2B) Internet marketplace that connects industry professionals effectively and efficiently with wine industry, suppliers, consultants and service professionals. Users may search both geographically and by category of interest. The site was created to provide information crucial to the success of the wine industry in an updated and easily accessible format.
WIN provides current and relevant information about suppliers and service professionals serving the North American and the global wine industry.
For Suppliers & Service Professionals, WIN is a more effective and efficient resource to reach potential customers, and to promote and sell their products and services.
WIN assists buyers to:
· identify & connect efficiently with industry suppliers
· gather information to manage their business successfully
For suppliers WIN:
· is an internet based marketplace and direct marketing agency committed to the business of wine and driving business to its members
· is the most targeted and measurable sales and marketing platform
· provides downloadable current winery listings and new winery alerts
WHO: Founded by industry experts George Christie and Elizabeth (E) Slater.
WHERE: Healdsburg, California
CORPORATE CONTACT: PO Box 924
Healdsburg, CA 95448
877.717.2946
CONTACT: Tami Christie
Voice: 707.953.9672
E-mail: Tami@WineIndustryNetwork.com
HOW : The Wine Industry Network is a supplier supported internet marketplace with the primary objective to find and connect the right buyer with the right supplier every time in a way that is easier than anything currently available. WIN is funded through supplier memberships that range in price from $35 to $90 per month depending on desired visibility. Additional advertising opportunities are available to members. Using the site’s tools and resources are free to both members and subscribers.
FEATURES: Members Products & Services : An environmentally-friendly, technologically-current and comprehensive Internet marketplace of products and services that is both fast and effective to use. Suppliers are easily accessible and can be sorted regionally, nationally and internationally as well as by category. Member presentations of their products and services are on dedicated individual web pages on WineIndustryNetwork.com. Members present product and company information to potential customers, including contact and key personnel, videos, photographs and pricing. New information can be added easily, immediately and frequently. Members have access to opt-in e-mail marketing and regular reports on site traffic, click-through rates and other web metrics.
Supplier Ratings & Referrals: Cumulative ratings are awarded suppliers and service professionals by the people who use their business. Those in the industry with first hand knowledge also may write referrals. Oversight of both referrals and ratings is strict, and enforced. Suppliers have an opportunity to respond to negative comments.
Educational Videos: Categorical listings of educational and informational videos on all facets of the wine and grape industries are available.
Business Tips & Tactics: A variety of topics vital to the industry including production, vineyard, operations, tasting room management and marketing may be easily downloaded and shared as PDF, word or excel files.
Supplier News: Users select the supplier news they want delivered to their inbox to keep them in touch with what’s new and essential to their business.
Wine Industry Associations & Educational Institutions: Individual web pages showing information, programs and curriculum is provided at no charge to associations and educational institutions.
WIN Timeline
August 2007: Wine industry marketing and customer service/sales leader Elizabeth Slater approaches wine marketing expert George Christie, to discuss how best to address the needs of her clients. Christie has been focusing on new technology including video in his wine marketing consultancy.
September 2007: As Christie and Slater brainstorm, a major similarity about their wine marketing consultancies emerges – they both regularly receive calls asking them for references and contact names for suppliers. They are asked for information about everything from corks to lawyers, to event planners, to barrels. Christie and Slater begin to think about a way to create a website that would supply that information for North America, as well as by region and category, to provide a comprehensive and preference-based solution for their winery clients.
January 2008: Christie attends the annual Unified Wine and Grape Symposium. As he walks the tradeshow floor, he wonders what do suppliers do to get their message out the other 362 days a year? How are suppliers reaching customers? What do they do if their product release date is too late for this trade show? Must they wait another year? Christie realizes that what the industry needs is an Internet based, economically and environmentally-conscious resource site. One that is current, convenient and interactive. He is energized with the idea and calls an enthusiastic Slater as he drives back from the show.
Christie and Slater talk about the marketing limitations of the existing resources. Both see the answer as an offshoot of earlier discussions. They decide to put energy into a data resource that will give wineries and suppliers a way to connect to the benefit of both. They will call it Wine Industry Network with the objective of creating a WIN-WIN environment for both buyers and suppliers.
Feb - April 2008: The original concept of an online directory expands under the influence of Christie and Slater’s marketing expertise. Their winery and supplier customers want more than just a listing and website link. They need an innovative sales and marketing tool for suppliers and an information rich research and purchasing tool for buyers. The site evolves into a robust, supplier-supported marketplace.
May to Nov 2008: Christie and Slater talk to their clients and contacts in the wine industry about the idea. The responses are overwhelmingly positive from both wineries and suppliers.
November 2008: A website developer is selected and Christie and Slater move forward with funding and building the resource and marketing site while continuing to work for their existing clients. They commit more than 80 hours a week and $90,000 to moving the project forward. The site look and concept is a team effort between Christie, Slater and more than 20 advisors representing wineries, suppliers, service professionals, associations, educational institutions and technology experts.
Jan – Sep 2009: Christie and Slater continue to talk to key industry professionals about the WIN concept and receive almost unanimous support. They create the new site with the features and programs most needed by the wine industry.
October 2009: Site launch
George Christie
Founder & President
George Christie settled in Sonoma County in 1991 where he quickly realized that the wine industry was where he wanted to concentrate his efforts. Since that time, he has been involved in nearly every aspect of the wine industry, from vineyard operations and grower relations to distributor realignments and national marketing campaigns.
In 2006 Christie launched his own marketing company, leveraging his years of industry experience assisting wineries to use both traditional and cutting edge marketing techniques to establish a voice in the sea of winery and wine promotion. An early advocate of video marketing and production, Christie has produced more than 100 marketing videos for wineries such as Domaine Carneros, Wattle Creek and Rodney Strong along with industry suppliers Leroi Tonnellerie and associations like Heart of Sonoma Valley, ZAP and the Meritage Alliance.
Always an active member in the wine community, Christie has also held board positions with the Russian River Wine Road, Winegrowers of Dry Creek Valley and currently serves on the Board of Directors for the Sonoma County Vintners.
His unique and well rounded background allows him to better understand the needs of both wineries and suppliers and have led to a site that is the wine industry resource for business information.
George was born in New Jersey and graduated with a Business Management degree from York College of Pennsylvania in 1989. He currently resides in Healdsburg, CA with his family.
Elizabeth Slater
Founder & Executive Vice President
A recognized expert in the fields of direct marketing and sales in the wine marketplace. Slater has taught more wineries and winery associations how to create and improve the effectiveness of their direct marketing programs and to make the most of each customer's potential than anyone in the wine industry today.
With the same humor and psychological insight she has used so effectively to understand the uniquely different challenges of wine businesses - large and small - Slater focused on co-creating WIN. Making it a direct marketing website that exemplifies everything she has discovered in more than 20 years in the wine industry and business-to-business marketing.
Quick-witted and original, Slater is a sought after speaker on winery sales, marketing, customer service, advertising and management topics. Wineries listen because she has the experience and creativity in the wine trenches to support her words.
After holding key marketing and sales management positions in national and international companies including the fast food, motorcycle, automotive, medical and computer industries, Slater turned her attention to wine in 1990 with the goal of starting her own wine marketing company. To learn the industry from the inside, she worked for two different wineries in four years. After developing and mastering the art of tasting room selling, she went on to handle all aspects of increasing their sales through direct marketing using the keen knowledge and insightfulness that she had used so successfully for other industries.
As the owner of the wine industry-consulting firm, In Short Direct Marketing, Slater has created marketing programs and events for the Russian River Wine Road including Winter Wineland and Wine & Food Affair. Under her direction, Passport to the Dry Creek Valley became one of the most popular, sought after and acclaimed events in the industry.
A born communicator, Slater teaches wine marketing courses at Santa Rosa Junior College and classes at Sonoma State, is the Vineyard & Winery Management marketing columnist, the program director of Tasting Room Profitability and a featured speaker at Wineries Unlimited. She lends her strategic planning expertise as a member of the Octagon Group in assisting different industries and businesses in rebuilding and improving their capabilities.